WASHINGTON (Pakistan Point News / Sputnik - 20th July, 2020) US Senator Jeff Merkley said in a statement on Monday that he will introduce legislation to stop President Donald Trump from using Federal law enforcement to contain violence in US states and cities.
"I'm flying back to DC right now to introduce legislation to stop Trump from using his federal forces as secret military police," Merkley said via Twitter. "What he is doing in my state is the stuff of dictatorships and nightmares, and let me be clear: If he gets away with it in [Oregon], he will do it elsewhere."
Merkley accused Trump earlier of using federal law enforcement agents as his own personal paramilitary force just as dictators do.
The Trump administration last week deployed federal agents to Portland to help quell unrest. The move has drawn criticism after reports emerged saying that federal officers, without badges or name tags, have detained protesters - and rioters - in an extrajudicial manner.
Earlier on Monday, Trump said he is seeking to send more federal agents to other major US cities experiencing an uptick in violence, such as Chicago and New York City.
